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Belgian Laces Volume 14 #53 December 1992 Belgian Laces Vol14 #53 Dear Members, The end of the year is approaching rapidly in Belgium and in most of Europe, the children are anxiously looking forward to December 6, when St Nicolas will come with gifts for the good children and the “martinet” (whip) for the bad ones. There will also be plenty of speculoos and massepain oranges and apples. Just thinking of the expectations, the fears and joys make us long for the holiday atmosphere of “the old country”. Then come the family reunions of Christmas, the joys of being together and sharing the blessings of the holidays. The New Year too brings special traditions, where the chi1dren will read their specially prepared “New Years Letters”: one for the parents, one for the grandparents and one for their godparents, who each will give them a few francs or a special present The children have worked hard on these letters, wilting them using their most beautiful handwriting and vocabulary! New Year too is the time for resolutions, decisions and promises. Decisions… promises… we asked you last year to help us raise the number of our membership to 400. We are delighted to let you know that we gave membership number to the last subscriber. Thanks and congratulations to you all! We want to do even better for 1993 and hope to reach or pass the 500 mark by the end of the year. With your continuous support, we should be able to do just that. The more we are the more we can help each other. You will have noticed too, that we have more contributors to the newsletter your newsletter. We welcome and solicit your contributions in articles and anecdotes, queries and comments. Regularly we receive letters of congratulations, members telling us how much they love Belgian Laces. Your expressions of appreciation give us the courage to continue the task we have set out to accomplish: keeping our Belgian heritage alive and well. We end this letter wishing you all a very merry holiday season! May you delight in little things, the joy the Yuletide season brings; the sweet scent of a Christmas tree, the warmth of friends and family. Table of Contents 51. Letter from the president Table of Contents 52 Belgian Gleanings 53. West Virginia News: René Zabeau 55. The FN Cars and Motorcycles, M Gaudette 57. The Wisconsin Corner, MaryAnn Defnet 59. Castle Garden: What do we know about them? by Clare Clemens 61. Queries 62. From and To… 64. Naturalization Records, Evelyn Ann Santilli 65. Passenger Lists, Howard Thomas 67. Recipes for the Holidays, Leen Inghels 51 Belgian Laces Vol14 #53 Belgian Gleanings The Belgian Franc How did the Belgian franc do during the recent financial Smoking – No Smoking shake-up? Very well, indeed. In an unknowing preview of Starting January 1995, all advertisement for tobacco will be things to come. The Economist, in its August edition, forbidden in Belgium. France went even faster and the same assessed the strengths and weaknesses of the various rule will be in effect starting January 1993. Italy, Germany currencies. While the peseta, the lira and the pound sterling and the other E.C. Nations will be following shortly with the were assessed as the weakest currencies, the Belgian franc salle rules. was listed as the strongest European currency vis a vis the Belgian Population Growing German mark. The overall rankings: Since 1991, the population of Belgium has been growing fast. 1. Germany The new official count being 10,022,207 inhabitants or about 2. Belgium 23,000 more than a year ago. 3. Netherlands 4. France Tintin in America 5. Ireland According to August 24 edition of Fortune Magazine, 6. Portugal Belgium’s newest export is... 7. Denmark. Tintin, the comic strip of the boy reporter Tintin, who rises 8. UK against evil around the world. Since 1929, 120 million copies 9. Italy have been sold worldwide of the 22 Tintin books. And now 10. Spain America is now catching one in 1991, sales of Tintin books At times at the end of August and the beginning of Septaber, rose 30%, to the Belgian franc even surpassed ‘the German mark as the 150,000 copies. Tintin now also has his own cartoon series on strongest currency in Europe. The main reasons for the strong HBO. (from Gazette van Detroit.) currency are a very low inflation and a substantial trade (Note of the editor: The series was first published in Belgium surplus, boosting investor confidence. A sore spot retains the under the umbrella title: Les Aventures de Tintin et Milou, budget deficit, which was the main target of the 1993 budget for the French edition, and Kuifte, in Flemish, (referring to plans. Copyrights 1992 - Thompson, Hine & Flory. the boy’s typical hairdo). There are in tact 23 different titles, but today Tintin au Pays Military Service des Soviets (Tintin in the land of the Soviets) is missing. This The Belgian Government has decided that starting January last one existed only in French before WW2 and was 1994, compulsory military duty will be abolished. apparently never translated in any other language.) The INAUGURAL Meeting of the West Virginia Belgian American Heritage Association centered around a tribute to the late glassworker and poet Oscar DUBOIS. Pictures from left are: René V. Zabeau, president of the society; Professor Fred Barkey of Charleston; Bernadette Goovaert an emissary to the Belgian Ambassador to the US and Charles DUBOIS, tbe poet’s son. 52 Belgian Laces Vol14 #53 West Virginia West Virginia West Virginia Belgian-American Society started in West Virginia by René Zabeau The Belgian-American Heritage Society of West Virginia held the first official meeting of the organization on October 4th, 1992 at the Waldomore Cultural Center in Clarksburg, West Virginia. This is the first time in the history of West Virginia that a state-wide organization of the Belgian-Americans has been formed as one unit. Approximately 104 people attended the meeting, almost all were of Belgian heritage. The late poet laureate Oscar Dubois, of Morgantown, WVa. was honored at the gathering. His son Charles Dubois of Morgantown as well as other direct descendants were present to receive a framed and autographed portrait of King Baudouin I of Belgium and his wife Queen Fabiola de Mora. Bernadette GOOVAERTS, Public Relations officer and Emissary to Belgium’s Ambassador to the United States Juan cassiers, presented the picture. “A Belgian by birth, a glass cutter by trade and a poet by love” is how Ambassador Cassiers described Dubois in his letter to the Society read aloud by Mrs. Goovaerts. Society President René Zabeau told the group that Dubois was born September 7th, 1879 in Jumet, Hainaut Province, Belgium. The birthday of King Baudouin is also September 7th! Dubois came to the United States in 1892 at the age of 13, to Kane, PA, where his father became a glassblower. He served his apprenticeship as a glass cutter in Kane. As a master workman, he also worked in Mt Jewett, Hazelhurst, Smethport, Bradford, Pt Marion and Fairchance, PA. He came to Morgantown, WVa. in 1901, arriving by boat from Pittsburgh, PA. He worked as a glass cutter in Clarksburg, WVa. until he was 77 when he retired. He wrote poetry in his younger years but it wasn’t until after he retired at 77 years of age that he began writing in earnest. His poetry appeared in print for the first time, in 1951 in the old Echoes of West Virginai Magazine. He had numerous books of poetry published. He was much honored at West Virginia University in Morgantown. The Morgantown Poetry Society named an annual contest and cash award: Oscar Dubois Award for Poetry. In one of his later poems entitled Time is Today Dubois wrote: At times we long for tomorrow in hoping for a better day and we would like to figure out how to retrieve yesterday; Or try to find what life’s about and solve the problem of the day Still we enjoy going along having a definite day. He kept writing poetry until he died in Morgantown at the age of 109. His life began after retirement. In his letter, Ambassador Cassiers said: “Dubois symbolizes the West Virginian from Belgium He recalled that a century ago there was a migration of Belgians to West Virginia and nearby states, where the glass industry flourished: “You established some of the Belgian traditions in the workplace and in cultural life”, Cassius wrote. “You exported the Belgian trade marks of high quality craftsmanship, social commitment and joie de vivre (joy of living)”. “Belgians”, he continued “shaped to glassware industry in the United States, prior to the Industrial Revolution. [ ] By actively participating in the management decisions of the glass factories and even successfully establishing worker-owned corporate enterprises, they built the glass industy into one of the pillars of the American economy. [ ] Children and grandchildren of the orginal settlers became active contributors to the society of West Virginia and they did not forget their Belgian roots. 53 Belgian Laces Vol14 #53 Mrs. Bernadette Goovaerts, who captured the hearts of all those present, was intoduced by Dr. Fred Barkey, professor-historian of West Virginia Graduate College, Institute, WVa., and Chevalier de l’Ordre de Leopold II, Roi des Belges (Knight of the Order of Leopold II, King of the Belgians). Dr. Barkey is also author of “Cinder heads in the Hills”. Miss Roberta Bastin, vice-president of the Society, presented Mrs. Goovaerts and Dr. Barkey with a collector’s item of West Virginia hand-blown glassware on behalf of the Society.